Part 2: Painting the Interior

This build has not completely stalled, despite the long hiatus since the last update.

I have been working on the painting of the interior and undercarriage and I have done some research as to what colors to use. The passenger cabin was left in natural wood color (mahogany maybe) with some varnish to protect the wood. The driver position was most likely painted wood, in different versions of tan and sand color, but perhaps it was natural wood color in some examples.

As the model features a full interior (which is very exposed due to the large windows), you will have to remove and prepare all the parts, ensuring proper dry fitting of them before you can paint and glue them.

Packaging

Master Box’s 1/72 Mk I “Female” British tank with Gaza Modifications comes in a heavy card stock box that opens at either end. Inside is a resalable plastic bag holding the four plastic sprues, one flexible rubbery sprue (tracks), and a small plastic envelope for the decal sheet. The plastic sprues have about 60 parts, but about a quarter of them are reserved for a different variant of the tank.

The front of the box shows an example of the prototype in a Middle Eastern setting. The back has a four-view illustration that also doubles as a painting guide. Two colors are called out, Vallejo 988 Khaki for the main section of the tank and a mixture of gunmetal and black for the tracks.

The Aircraft

The TSR-2 has now been kitted in three scales: 1/48, 1/72, and 1/144. Because of space limitations, I built the 1/144 model. Only one TSR-2 ever flew, and the two in museums are prototypes. What if the RAF had managed to salvage the program and this marvelous looking piece of hardware actually went into full production? RAF TSR-2s could have seen action in the Cold War, the Falklands, Bosnia/Kosovo, the Gulf War(s), Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya! The Pit Road kit comes with two of these “what if” schemes, and due to the popularity of the kit, several decal makers have produced sheets for “what if” TSRs. Of course I had to do a different one.

The Scale Aircraft Conversions Set

The SAC set for the TSR-2 consists of seven parts, all in white metal. There is a nose gear leg, two main gear legs, oleo scissors, and bogies for the main wheels (the kit’s wheels are used). These replacement parts closely match the Pit Road parts.

This Quickboost set is a direct replacement for the undercarriage doors for the Academy SB2C kit. They are almost identical to the kit parts, but have the push pin marks that are present on the kit parts taken care of. Due to the framework on the inside of the doors, the pin marks can be difficult to eradicate. Quickboost has done this delicate work for you. Basically, it comes down to the question: is the time and effort it would take you to fill and sand away the push pin marks without damaging the framework worth $6.50? If it is, this set is certainly recommended!

Thanks go to Aires Hobby Models for supplying the parts and to IPMS/USA for allowing me to review them.

Aires is constantly adding to the Quickboost line, and here is one of the latest.

QB 48-602 are gun barrels designed to be used with Hasegawa’s 1/48 N1K2-J. As with other Quickboost products, these are meant to be drop-fit replacements for kit parts. The molding on this resin set was extremely crisp.

In comparing these to the kit items they are designed to replace, I found a few key differences. First, and probably the main reason one would want this set, the tips of the QB set are open. Hasegawa’s barrels are sadly molded flush across, with no opening. While in general I am fine to create an opening with the tip of my Xacto and a small drill on ‘standard’ gun barrels, the flared muzzle on these makes that a bit more challenging of an undertaking. So I will happily be using the QB ones instead. Second, the QB barrels just have a much less ‘clunky’ look to them. A quick glance at the photos should help demonstrate that.